Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Shan Herald Agency for News

Shan Herald Agency for News

Burma migrant workers urge government to protect their rights

Posted: 22 Dec 2015 02:11 AM PST

A coalition of NGOs in Thailand publicly called on the Burmese government to better address hardships faced by migrant workers on December 18, International Migrants Day.

U San Yu Kyaw- the First Secretary and Consul of the Chiang Mai-based Myanmar Consulate-General
Migrant workers in Thailand—of whom there are an estimated two million from Burma—are still experiencing many problems, according to statement released by the group. Highlighted were issues of basic legal documentation, such as the work permit registration procedure, which workers described as "complicated and confusing," and the time-consuming nationality verification process.

As a result, agents and broker companies now undertake the procedures on behalf of migrants, promising to process the applications more expediently and demanding high costs compared to the actual costs set by the government.

Once migrant workers receive these documents, employers are known to withhold their travel documents and work permits, which is against the law.

Regarding these issues, U San Yu Kyaw, the First Secretary and Consul of the Chiang Mai-based Myanmar Consulate-General, told the coalition that the government is focused on migrant rights.

"For the Burmese migrants to be legal when they work abroad, for their rights protection and safety, we [the Myanmar Consulate] and the Myanmar government are taking concerns seriously," he said.

The coalition of migrant rights protection groups also urged Burma's government representatives to negotiate and coordinate with the Thai government to allow all migrants entering the country to enter legally in order to eliminate exploitation, human trafficking and forced labor of Burma's workers.

U San Yu Kyaw said that the Consulate has discussed the documentation issue with Thai government and now they are working with Naypyidaw to identify solutions.
"We will try our best to work for our people," he added.

The event was organized by the Workers Solidarity Association (WSA), the Migrant Workers Federation (MWF), the MAP Foundation, the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF), Shan Youth Power (SYP), the Mekong Migration Network (MMN), the Shan Women's Action Network (SWAN) and EMPOWER.

BY SAI AW / Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)

To Hopeland and Back: The bare bones for peace talks

Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:23 AM PST

My last journal ended with the formation of the enlarged Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) with the inclusion of the political parties and its decision to draft the framework for political dialogue (FPD) before 15 December.

This journal begins with my return to Burma to attend the Joint Implementation Coordination Meeting (JICM) that served as the supreme arbiter and mediator to the UPDJC as well as its twin body, the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee (JMC).

Drafters meeting on November 27, 2015 at the Myanmar Peace Center (Photo: Nyo Ohn Myint, Facebook)
Day One: Sunday, December 13, 2015

The bee gathers nectar from the flower
Without marring its beauty or perfume
Even so should the sage settle and wander
The Dhammapada

Predictably, the plane that I take to the old capital is Bangkok Airways. Equally predictable is the hotel where I put up for the night on my way to Naypyidaw: Green Hill. I don't feel well because yesterday I was treated to two consecutive meals of highly delicious sticky rice. So I spend the day reading the minutes and the draft Framework for Political Dialogue (FPD) jointly drawn up by 24 representatives from the government, eight EAOs (Ethnic Armed Organizations) and the political parties.

The three basic principles for the drafters as laid down by the UPDJC were that the draft must:
  • Be flexible, to make it easier for the new government and the new legislature that may want to make changes to it
  • Consult FPD drafts previously drawn up and compiled by several organizations, including the NLD
  • Be derived from the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) which was signed in October
The three camps, however, were divided on the composition of the Union Peace Conference which is planned for mid-January.
  • The military's proposal: 100 participants each from the government, legislature, military (Tatmadaw), EAOs, and political parties; and 25 each from other ethnicities category and other relevant representatives (meaning academics and such)
  • The political parties' motion: equal number of representatives from government-legislature-Tatmadaw, EAOs, and political parties
  • The eight EAOs meanwhile are sticking to the NCA's paragraph 22 (a): Representatives from the government, Hluttaws (legislatures) and the Tatmadaw; representatives from registered political parties; (other) ethnic representatives; and other relevant representatives
According to the minutes, U Aung Min, the government's chief representative, had earlier proposed that the UPC be made up of 150 representatives each from the three camps.

"With the NLD winning the polls, the political landscape has changed," one insider told me. "Until now, the government, legislature and the Tatmadaw are one and the same. But with the inevitability of the NLD taking over the executive and the legislative branches in the next few months, the Tatmadaw does not feel at ease being attached to it."

During the evening, there comes a message from Naypyitaw, where the UPDJC will be meeting tomorrow: The NLD has agreed with the EAOs' proposition.

The obvious question therefore is: how will the military react to it?

With this thought, I treat myself to a quiet reading of Shan Folk Tales, compiled and translated by Pu Loi Hom and Pu Loi Tun, before calling it a day.

By SAI KHUENSAI / Director of Pyidaungsu Institute and Founder of Shan Herald Agency for News (S.H.A.N)

All views expressed are the author's own.
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